Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, Grove Impact
First published in March 2023
Standing at the intersection of real estate ownership and business ownership, the real estate development industry has the potential to be a powerful engine for Black and Hispanic Americans to build wealth.
This commissioned report, created by the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC) with Grove Impact as part of its Obsidian Ecosystem Initiative (OEI), presents the findings of first-of-its kind research on Black and Hispanic real estate developers.
The report sheds light on the current state of Black and Hispanic real estate developers by identifying a representation crisis among real estate developers, a revenue gap for mid-sized Black developers, and revenue cliffs facing large Black and Hispanic developers. This report estimates the potential impact of removing the constraints on Black and Hispanic developers and recommends steps that real estate developers and their organizations, investors, public policymakers, and foundations could take to increase diversity in the real estate development industry.